2001 Ford Focus ZX3

Go slow, have fun.

When we talk cars, especially sporty ones, the first question always is: How fast is it? And we happily indulge your need by providing the hard performance numbers that answer the question. But let's ask a different question: How fast do you have to go to have fun? We'd argue that the answer is "not very."

In the case of the Ford Focus ZX3 pictured here, fun is 0 to 60 mph in 8.7 seconds and a top speed of 104 mph. There's no typo there. The Focus takes nearly twice as long as a Corvette Z06 to reach 60 and gives up 64 mph in top speed.

We've always suspected that speed does not necessarily equal fun, and at this year's 10Best contest, the Focus ZX3, which has been on that list for two years running, cemented the thought. As we drove around our secret loop in different cars, we noticed an amazing fact: Our speed in this Focus was very close to the speed in much faster cars such as the Chevrolet Corvette Z06.

On a public road, where most of us get 95 percent of our driving jollies, the fun is complicated by the presence of people, pets, and other cars. As a result, speed is dictated more by how much risk you're willing to take than the capability of the car. If the Corvette could talk, it would have been laughing at the wankers behind its wheel as it sped around the loop barely breathing. In the Focus, on the other hand, we were flogging the bejeezus out of it.

The point is, we were driving the Focus. Now, our conclusion does not mean a slower car such as the Kia Spectra provides the same low-speed jollies. It means the Focus ZX3 is a special little car.

The Focus is the world car Ford hoped the Contour/Mondeo would be. Developed in Europe, it is selling well both here and abroad. With such a large volume --- worldwide sales for 2000 approached one million cars -- Ford has been able to offer the Focus at a remarkably low price.